Many years ago my family lived in a home with a windmill in the front yard. I loved that windmill, especially in the springtime when the wind would force the blades to twirl. The beautiful flowers that surrounded its base only enhanced its beauty. Watching its movements while sipping on a hot cup of coffee was so tranquil. I started many of my days that way.

After a few years had passed, its appearance began to fade. The windmill badly needed to be painted. We had four small children at the time, so between time and money, the windmill took a backseat in priorities.

One morning, while sipping on my coffee and looking out the window, I silently mentioned to God that I wished I had the money to paint that windmill. It just brought me so much pleasure.

A mystery

I did not give it much thought after that, but a few days later I looked out the window and noticed something profoundly different. Were my eyes deceiving me? The windmill seemed brighter and looked like new!

I ran outside to get a closer look and, to my disbelief, it had a brand-new coat of paint! It was even painted in the color that I had wanted to paint it. I knew no one in my family had painted it. It had not been painted when I went to bed the night before.

I ran in to tell my husband, and he thought I had gone crazy until he took a look and saw for himself the newly painted windmill. How did this happen? We racked our brains, but couldn't figure it out. We went about our business that day, still wondering about this mystery. When I returned home that evening, a young neighbor kid came over with a confession. He told me that during the night he had painted the windmill red. But why? How? He said he had wanted to do something nice. But I had never mentioned to this kid about wanting to paint the windmill. In fact I really did not know him.

I was far too happy to be angry with him. I knew who inspired this young kid to paint my windmill. God heard my request and the prayer was answered. Needless to say, God made me feel very special that day.

Sometimes we think that God is only interested in the big things that occur in our lives--that we should only ask Him for things that are critical. But the fact is, as the windmill showed me, God wants us to be happy. God wants to build a personal relationship with us and to show us how much He loves us.

Not one, but two... On another occasion, my little girl, who was 4 years old at the time, wanted a Cabbage Patch doll. The doll was very popular, which made it very expensive. All of her friends had one, but we could not afford to buy her one. I wanted so much to buy that doll for her. I told my daughter to pray about it, and she did.

The very next weekend, my daughter had not one, but two Cabbage Patch dolls given to her! One doll was given to her at church by her friend's mom, and the next day she received one from her grandmother. Now, 21 years later, my daughter still has those dolls. The dolls symbolize how much God cared about her request.

It is true that God does not give us everything we want, but just like a loving parent, He wants to love us and please us.

An urgent plea

God does hear our prayers about big things too, and He answers those that are urgent and critical. I'll never forget one occasion when God did just that for me! He answered a very urgent plea for help from a very frightened teen. Had God not intervened, I would not be here today. I was only 14 at the time when my father, in one of his fits of rage, placed a loaded gun to my head and told me he was going to kill me. All I could do was stay completely still for fear that the gun would go off and pray silently that God would spare my life.

Even though no one else heard that urgent plea for help, my great Father in heaven did and came to my rescue. My dad just put the gun down and walked away.

God is there to help us in the times of urgency, but He also cares for the little things that matter to us. In John 15:7 Jesus tells us, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." God wants to give us the good things in life. Do we see a loving God who wants the best for us? Or do we see a harsh, uncaring God?

How we see God

Some people think of God as being something like a lady I once heard about. This lady had a bird named Peppy. One day she was busy vacuuming out the bottom of his cage when the phone rang. She grabbed the phone at the same time and, OOPS! Peppy was sucked up in the vacuum. She raced to turn off the vacuum and pull out the dazed and shocked bird. Realizing how dirty he was, she ran to the kitchen with Peppy to wash off the dust with cold water. Now poor Peppy was shivering from the cold water that was drenching him. Realizing what she had done, the lady ran to get the blow dryer and blasted the poor bird with hot air. Needless to say, Peppy never sang again.

Sometimes we view God as harsh and unkind, as a Father who is ready to suck us up at any infraction, dump cold water on us if we begin to enjoy life and then blast us with heat if we mess up. No wonder many of us lack confidence in asking God for the good things in life. Have we stopped singing like Peppy? Or do we see God the way He really is, a God who loves us even more than we love our own children? It is our Father's good pleasure to give us what we desire. My earthly father was harsh and unkind, but my heavenly Father has gone out of His way to prove to me how much He cares for me.

Whenever I see a windmill, I am reminded of God's great love for me many years ago, how much He cared about my feelings concerning our windmill. Was painting the windmill an urgently important request? No! But like a good parent, God wanted to make me happy.

When I talk to God, I can remember how good and loving He is. God is there to hear my urgent requests, but He also cares about the smallest things that matter in my life. I just have to ask.